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1
t
. : STATS HISTORICAL 2' JCIETY I
KITT & LOV. RY CI . : ii: C!
COLUMBIA t LIC. bZZjl
74th Year No. 162 Good Morning! It's Friday, March 26, 1982 2 Swtioro 20 Page 25 Cents
Two SaSvadoran government units ended up ffring at each other after the guerrillas they were fighting slipped awayPTk,, 0
SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador ( UPI)
Leftist rebels attacked El Salvador's cen-tral
electoral commission twice Thursday
and raided villages throughout Morazan
province in a stepped- u- p offensive to dis-rupt
elections only three days sway.
Electoral commission president Jorge
Bustamante said the. attack on the com-mission
. headquarters failed because
material for the election such as ballots
and ballot boxes has already been distri-buted
around the country. . ; .
UJS. election observer Richard Scam- mo- n,
who says he has been involved with
elections since m student . tfyjjaj5tK
gland 47 years ago, reported thai the vol- in- g
system set for Sunday was, ". simple .
butfair." ''". "'."-- -
" I don't see how the elections can be
rigged, the pressures are to disrupt elec-tions
not rig mem," he said.
Scammon is part of the UJS. delegation
headed by Sen. Nancy Kassebuam, El- Kan- sas,
that includes two other congress- -
Leftists try to disrupt coining elections
man, a group from the AFL- CI- O and a
priest
The rebel- ru- n Radio Venceremos said
guerrillas have seized control of the en-tire
northeastern province of Morazan,
attacking virtually every government
outpost north of San Francisco Gotera, 78
miles ( 124 A kilometers) northeast of San
Salvador. ';
Venceremos added Torola and Joateca
,. WiileliaciVillaabittarlyTfcurfiy. .,
In an exclusive report to tlFIa journal-ist.
wiK5 visited Ydoaiquin, 78 miles ( 124.3
kilometers)' northeast of the capital, re-ported
guerrillas remained in undisputed
control of the village. Gaerrfltas overran
the army outpost in the town Wednesday
" The town is deserted except for the
guerrillas. The people have all fled to the
hills nearby," he said.
Bustamante said rebel gunmen failed to
damage his headquarters in their double
attack on the building.
Four men were guarding the headquar-ters,
located in northern San Salvador, at
the time of the first attack, 30 minutes af-ter
midnight.
Guerrillas attacked again an hour later
and residents said the clash lasted for
three hours.
. Two. irttcklodds. bf national guardsmen
were rushed to the scene to back up the
guards. No injuries were reported.
Journalists reported some of the shoot-ing
around the election commission was
between national guardsmen and national
police who mistook each other for the re--
At least three other separate outbreaks
of gunfire were reported around the capi- -
tal as pre- elector- al tension increased.
The " Escuadron Maximiliano Hernan-dez
Martinez," a right- win- g death squad,
denied it was behind a threat to kill 35 lo-cal
and foreign correspondents named in
a death list circulated March 16.
In a statement published by the news-paper
La Prensa Graphics., the death
squad said the list was released by " the
communists themselves."
.. The death squad added that it " la- mewe- d"
the deaths of four Dutch journal-ists
kflkd. by government troops the same
day.
The oodies of the four television news-men
arrived in Amsterdam Thursday. A
Dutch official has been sent to El Salva-dor
to investigate whether the remaining
Dutch reporters in the country were in
any jeopardy.
M. U. center to help pilot
cultural study projects
By Steve Wemsteia
aSssomian staff writer
. A gap in the interpretation of Mis-souri's
cultural heritage is about to
be filled. A steering committee,
headed by Susan Fladar, is in the
of setting up a cultural cen- iratt- he grocess University.
" For a state . Oat has such an in-credibly
rich history," Ms. Flader
says, " I am appalled at the dearth' of
really first- rat- e material."
Ms. Flader, a professor of history
at the University, says the center
win serve as a clearinghouse for in-terdisciplinary
research on projects
relating to the state.
Although the center does not yet
have a home or a fun- tim- e director --
( one is expected to be named within
a month), a major project the
Sainte Genevieve project is. under
way.; " - .
Sainte Genevieve, 70 miles ( 112 ki-lometers)
south of St Louis,, was
founded in the 17503. It was the first
European community in Missouri
and it boasts more French colonial
homes than any other city in. the
country.
Although several articles and
guidebooks of Sainte Genevieve have
been published, Ms. Flader says
there never has been a major schol-arly
study of the community.
' This lack of research is in part the
fault of what Ms. Flader calls the
" marvelously - complete docu-mentary
record." The city has a
more thorough record of itself than '
any other. town in the. United States,
she says.
" Currently, participants in the.
Sainte Genevieve project are looking
at the first 80 years of -- the set-tlement.
The study ends on the eve of
the German migration and concen-trates
on the French, Indians, black
lHgifflft&
slaves and Anglo- Americ- an settlers.
The National Endowment for the
Humanities is paying for the first
half of the three- ye- ar effort
" Even coming to terms with the
documentary record from that peri--'
od and that's even before we do
any archaeological digging or work
with architecture" is itself a ma-jor
project, she says.
The cultural center, which grew
out of the Sainte Genevieve project,
is being designed to deal with just,
such complex studies. Other projects
the center will help coordinate and
that are already under way include:
v-- " Cultural Life, Language and
Lack of material
failed appalling
by historian
in i i
' Folklore of Missouri Ethnic
Groups," ted by Dolf Schreeder of
the . University's department of Ger- man- ic
and Slavic Studies.
- " Delineation of Sodocultnral
Regions in Missouri," led by Rex --
Campbell of the University's rural
sodologydepartment
The " center also has been working
with University faculty to develop
plans for the following:
A major conference on the
French in the Mississippi Valley.
,--- A study of implications of Japa-nese
investment in the state. Such a
study would investigate, from the
viewpoint of several disciplines, the
way to ease possible cultural ten-sions.
( Gov. Christopher Bond has
been seeking Japanese investment
in the state.)
" The Heritage of Work in Mis-souri,"
a history of work and unions
and their effects. The study would
bring together University and union
researchers.
" Energy Conservation and Ur-ban
Revitalization," a study that
would explore connections between
two much- discuss- ed subjects, histor-ic
preservation and making old
TmiVjingn energy efficient.
" Missouri Folk Their Crea-tive
Images," an art exhibit
This last project underscores an-other
important mission of the cen-ter:
public outreach.
The center win not serve as a mu--'
seum, but Ms. Flader sees one of its
principal activities as helping to pre-sent
the results of research in a form
that the general public can use.
The center also win help obtain in-formation
aboout what academic
programs may be lacking at the Uni-versity.
But, Ms. Flader says, " That
doesnt mean offering its own degree
programs."
Rather, she says, the center would
investigate what multidisciplinary
programs may be needed and serve
as a catalyst to develop such pro-grams.
-- '
Ms. Flader's doctoral thesis in en-vironmental
history led her to study
. the Southwest and Great Lakes area.
Through her research, she became
acquainted with the depth of histori-cal
research in other states and the
relative lack of such systematic re-search
in Missouri.
" They haven't had as rich or excit-ing
a history as Missouri,'! she says.
" It's, just that there's been better
work done in those states."
g pjn. Amadeus Siring Quartet,
Jesse Auditorium. Tickets $ 7 for
public, $ S for students, $ 5 for groups
of 10 or more.
8 pjn. Jazz Trumpeter Msynard
Ferguson, Stephens College Assem-bly
HalL Tickets $ 7, and $ 11.
,."'' , 875- 505- 0
" V. i c" OTGnEATWSCOUJMQIA'
V V wxwuati era, wn. Ma aoa
'-
-' vv - .
Easiness ..................... .............. 12&
' Classified ................................' 7- 1Q- A
Gjs& don ............. 1....................... 4A
' Altering
more than
a theater' By Steve Weinstem
Bifissocrian staff writer
One of Columbia's landmarks soon may be unrecogni-zable,
and a distinguished architectural historian blames
profit motive for the potential loss facing the city.
The building is the Missouri Theater, 203 S. Ninth St.
David Soren, chairman of the University's department
of art history and archaeology, says he found out plans
for the theater's future when he received a telephone call
from a Colorado architectural firm Thursday. The caller
was interested in possible community reaction to alter-ing
the theater, Soren says.
" I'm testing the water," Soren quoted the architect as
saying.
The building is listed on the National Register of His-torical
Places. Soren's wife, Noelle, is a member of the
Missouri Department of Natural Resources and was re-sponsible
for the building's historic designation.
Soren said the architect who had contacted turn was in-vestigating
the possibility of turning the theater into a
triplex. Soren said he suggested putting a protective
shell over the theater's interior framework, thereby sav-ing
the intricate exterior decorations that make the
building so distinctive. The architect rejected these sug-gestions
as being too expensive, Soren said. He said the
architect cited " the profit motive" as the reason for the
chaoses.
Despite the landmark status, no permission is needed
to after or even destroy the building, Soren said.
" Really, all that can happen is a citizen's campaign to
save the Missouri Theater," he said.
Although Soren is leaving this summer to take a posi-tion
at the University of Arizona, he is concerned about
the building's fate.
" Ill be glad to speak out as long as I'm here," Soren
said. " But I hope that the citizens of Columbia will speak
out"
" The Missouri Theater doesn't know anything about
this," he said. " Tins is all being done by outsiders."
Commonwealth Theatres Inc., a chain based in Kansas
City, Mo., owns the Missouri Theater. Local Common-wealth
manager David Jones had no comment about
changes in the theater Thursday. Last year, Jones told
the Columbia Missourian,- - " They don't build them like
the Missouri any more. Theaters like the Missouri are
just too darn expensive to build."
. The theater, the oldest in Columbia, -- was- opened on '
Oct 5, 1928. The first movie shown there was Buster Kea- ton- ' s
" Steamboat Bill Jr." The theater also featured
vaudeville performances. Relics of those days remain in
old dressing rooms, the outline of an orchestra pit and a
3C04igfat chandelier.
The theater is a prize example of the elaborate art- de- co
style popular in the 1920s. Such theaters are becom-ing
increasingly rare today.
Ciml; eiaf& ax
Senator backs revenue director
JEFFERSON CITY ( AP)
Senate Majority Leader Harry
Wiggins, in an emotional address
to bis colleagues, Thursday de-fended
Revenue Director Ray
James against attacks on the his
agency's operations.
Wiggins, D- Kan- sas City, said
James is " an honest, faithful and
tetany dedicated director" who in
recent weeks had been the victim
of " cheap shots."
Last week, House Speaker Bob
Griffin, D- Camer- on, ordered the
House Committee on Governmen-tal
Review to begin an investiga-tion
into what Griffin said were se-rious
mismanagement problems in
the revenue agency.
Griffin has said the department
had been lax in collecting all tax
dollars due to the state, fired com-- 8
petent employees without just
cause and misspent money that
was intended to be used to hire ad-ditional
tax auditors.
But Wiggins said the criticism of
James and his agency was " unjus-tified,
unreasonable and unforgi- veable- ."
Griffin later denied he had taken
' ' cheap shots" at James.
" There's nothing personal be-tween
Ray James and L" Griffin
said in an interview. " But I think
it's, obvious to most people the rev-enue
department has a lot of prob-lems.
It's our responsibility to find
out what those problems are."
With James watching from an
upper Senate gallery, Wiggins de-fended
the revenue director as " a
man trying to do a good job."
" He has turned the department
into a department of the people,
' even though tax collectors are not
popular," Wiggins said.
Although Wiggins did not ad-dress
Griffin's allegations specif-ically,
he said he would be willing
to " stand up" for James against
any attacks on his ability to run
the department.
Joining Wiggins in defending the
revenue director was Sen. Robert
Johnson, R- Le- e's Summit
" Some of the attacks ( on
James) have been politically moti- -
viated in some cases," Johnson
said.
James later was applauded by
most of the senators in the cham-ber
when he was introduced by
Wiggins.
The senator's comments came
as he criticized the House for its
Wednesday vote to reject Gov.
Christopher Bond's plan to place
employees of the revenue and ag-riculture
departments under the
state's merit system.
As in previous years, the plan
was killed after opponents of the
merit system, which is similar to
federal civil service, said it only
would make it more difficult to fire
incompetent employees.
Backers of the plan, including
James, said the merit system
would help ensure that revenue
employees were hired or fired on
the basis of their ability rather
than their political affiliations.
" The merit system would put
the revenue department in the
shape it should be," Wiggins said I
later. 1
Banker; Wall Street gets leaks
WASHINGTON ( UPI) A top
banker has passed to the Labor De- - --
partment reports that sensitive eco-nomic
data is reaching Wall Street
and Chicago financial markets be-fore
government release, it was
learned Thursday. Security is being
tightened as a result
Government and banking officials
believe . such advance information
could result in profits on commodity
or cash exchanges for those who re-ceive
it before it becomes public
knowledge.
Peter Sternlight, senior vice presi-dent
of the Federal Reserve Bank of
New York, told UPI in an interview
that he has received reports from
" brokers or dealers in government
securities markets" that advance in-formation
is available on Wall Street
and Chicago markets.
" When there is a question of it ( the
embargo) being breached, I brought
it to the attention of BLS," Sternlight
said.
Henry Lowenstern, associate Bu
reau of Labor commissioner, said
reports were received from Stem- lig- ht
on Jan. 8 about December un-employment
data being " around the
floor" of the Board of Trade in Chi-cago
about 15 minutes before release
time, and on March 12 about produc-er
prices data available at the fu-tures
market in Chicago.
Lowenstern said earlier reports of
premature release might have been
predictions or " somebody's brava-do."
" In this case, with the unexpected
0.1 point drop ( in finished products),
that seemed less likely," he said.
President Reagan, through Mur-ray
Weidenbaum, chairman of the
Council of Economic Advisers, re-ceives
knowledge of BLS data a day
before the release.
! Sxcept fc? 20 or 30 individuals
working on the data in the bureau,
no others have knowledge until an
hour before release time, when the
media and -- some government offi
cials receive it on an embargoed ba-sis.
Sternlight said be has been called
by individuals he knows in govern-ment
securities markets about
teaks, but refused to divulge their
names to UPL
Sternlight said ha has been unable
to trace the reports beyond the indi-viduals
that call him.
" I find enormous resistance at
that point," he said. " They just don't
like to involve the next party on the
line."
The news that prices went up more
or less ( than expected) could influ-ence
the value of securities, Stern-light
added.
" It's possible to profit on different
kinds of commodity markets," said
Labor Department media director
Paul Williams.
The BLS has announced that effec-tive
April 2, the advance period that
news media can obtain econsanic re-ports
wfll be compressed from one
hour to 30 minutes, and the release
time moved to 8: 30 ajn. from 9 aon.

1
t
. : STATS HISTORICAL 2' JCIETY I
KITT & LOV. RY CI . : ii: C!
COLUMBIA t LIC. bZZjl
74th Year No. 162 Good Morning! It's Friday, March 26, 1982 2 Swtioro 20 Page 25 Cents
Two SaSvadoran government units ended up ffring at each other after the guerrillas they were fighting slipped awayPTk,, 0
SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador ( UPI)
Leftist rebels attacked El Salvador's cen-tral
electoral commission twice Thursday
and raided villages throughout Morazan
province in a stepped- u- p offensive to dis-rupt
elections only three days sway.
Electoral commission president Jorge
Bustamante said the. attack on the com-mission
. headquarters failed because
material for the election such as ballots
and ballot boxes has already been distri-buted
around the country. . ; .
UJS. election observer Richard Scam- mo- n,
who says he has been involved with
elections since m student . tfyjjaj5tK
gland 47 years ago, reported thai the vol- in- g
system set for Sunday was, ". simple .
butfair." ''". "'."-- -
" I don't see how the elections can be
rigged, the pressures are to disrupt elec-tions
not rig mem," he said.
Scammon is part of the UJS. delegation
headed by Sen. Nancy Kassebuam, El- Kan- sas,
that includes two other congress- -
Leftists try to disrupt coining elections
man, a group from the AFL- CI- O and a
priest
The rebel- ru- n Radio Venceremos said
guerrillas have seized control of the en-tire
northeastern province of Morazan,
attacking virtually every government
outpost north of San Francisco Gotera, 78
miles ( 124 A kilometers) northeast of San
Salvador. ';
Venceremos added Torola and Joateca
,. WiileliaciVillaabittarlyTfcurfiy. .,
In an exclusive report to tlFIa journal-ist.
wiK5 visited Ydoaiquin, 78 miles ( 124.3
kilometers)' northeast of the capital, re-ported
guerrillas remained in undisputed
control of the village. Gaerrfltas overran
the army outpost in the town Wednesday
" The town is deserted except for the
guerrillas. The people have all fled to the
hills nearby," he said.
Bustamante said rebel gunmen failed to
damage his headquarters in their double
attack on the building.
Four men were guarding the headquar-ters,
located in northern San Salvador, at
the time of the first attack, 30 minutes af-ter
midnight.
Guerrillas attacked again an hour later
and residents said the clash lasted for
three hours.
. Two. irttcklodds. bf national guardsmen
were rushed to the scene to back up the
guards. No injuries were reported.
Journalists reported some of the shoot-ing
around the election commission was
between national guardsmen and national
police who mistook each other for the re--
At least three other separate outbreaks
of gunfire were reported around the capi- -
tal as pre- elector- al tension increased.
The " Escuadron Maximiliano Hernan-dez
Martinez," a right- win- g death squad,
denied it was behind a threat to kill 35 lo-cal
and foreign correspondents named in
a death list circulated March 16.
In a statement published by the news-paper
La Prensa Graphics., the death
squad said the list was released by " the
communists themselves."
.. The death squad added that it " la- mewe- d"
the deaths of four Dutch journal-ists
kflkd. by government troops the same
day.
The oodies of the four television news-men
arrived in Amsterdam Thursday. A
Dutch official has been sent to El Salva-dor
to investigate whether the remaining
Dutch reporters in the country were in
any jeopardy.
M. U. center to help pilot
cultural study projects
By Steve Wemsteia
aSssomian staff writer
. A gap in the interpretation of Mis-souri's
cultural heritage is about to
be filled. A steering committee,
headed by Susan Fladar, is in the
of setting up a cultural cen- iratt- he grocess University.
" For a state . Oat has such an in-credibly
rich history," Ms. Flader
says, " I am appalled at the dearth' of
really first- rat- e material."
Ms. Flader, a professor of history
at the University, says the center
win serve as a clearinghouse for in-terdisciplinary
research on projects
relating to the state.
Although the center does not yet
have a home or a fun- tim- e director --
( one is expected to be named within
a month), a major project the
Sainte Genevieve project is. under
way.; " - .
Sainte Genevieve, 70 miles ( 112 ki-lometers)
south of St Louis,, was
founded in the 17503. It was the first
European community in Missouri
and it boasts more French colonial
homes than any other city in. the
country.
Although several articles and
guidebooks of Sainte Genevieve have
been published, Ms. Flader says
there never has been a major schol-arly
study of the community.
' This lack of research is in part the
fault of what Ms. Flader calls the
" marvelously - complete docu-mentary
record." The city has a
more thorough record of itself than '
any other. town in the. United States,
she says.
" Currently, participants in the.
Sainte Genevieve project are looking
at the first 80 years of -- the set-tlement.
The study ends on the eve of
the German migration and concen-trates
on the French, Indians, black
lHgifflft&
slaves and Anglo- Americ- an settlers.
The National Endowment for the
Humanities is paying for the first
half of the three- ye- ar effort
" Even coming to terms with the
documentary record from that peri--'
od and that's even before we do
any archaeological digging or work
with architecture" is itself a ma-jor
project, she says.
The cultural center, which grew
out of the Sainte Genevieve project,
is being designed to deal with just,
such complex studies. Other projects
the center will help coordinate and
that are already under way include:
v-- " Cultural Life, Language and
Lack of material
failed appalling
by historian
in i i
' Folklore of Missouri Ethnic
Groups," ted by Dolf Schreeder of
the . University's department of Ger- man- ic
and Slavic Studies.
- " Delineation of Sodocultnral
Regions in Missouri," led by Rex --
Campbell of the University's rural
sodologydepartment
The " center also has been working
with University faculty to develop
plans for the following:
A major conference on the
French in the Mississippi Valley.
,--- A study of implications of Japa-nese
investment in the state. Such a
study would investigate, from the
viewpoint of several disciplines, the
way to ease possible cultural ten-sions.
( Gov. Christopher Bond has
been seeking Japanese investment
in the state.)
" The Heritage of Work in Mis-souri,"
a history of work and unions
and their effects. The study would
bring together University and union
researchers.
" Energy Conservation and Ur-ban
Revitalization," a study that
would explore connections between
two much- discuss- ed subjects, histor-ic
preservation and making old
TmiVjingn energy efficient.
" Missouri Folk Their Crea-tive
Images," an art exhibit
This last project underscores an-other
important mission of the cen-ter:
public outreach.
The center win not serve as a mu--'
seum, but Ms. Flader sees one of its
principal activities as helping to pre-sent
the results of research in a form
that the general public can use.
The center also win help obtain in-formation
aboout what academic
programs may be lacking at the Uni-versity.
But, Ms. Flader says, " That
doesnt mean offering its own degree
programs."
Rather, she says, the center would
investigate what multidisciplinary
programs may be needed and serve
as a catalyst to develop such pro-grams.
-- '
Ms. Flader's doctoral thesis in en-vironmental
history led her to study
. the Southwest and Great Lakes area.
Through her research, she became
acquainted with the depth of histori-cal
research in other states and the
relative lack of such systematic re-search
in Missouri.
" They haven't had as rich or excit-ing
a history as Missouri,'! she says.
" It's, just that there's been better
work done in those states."
g pjn. Amadeus Siring Quartet,
Jesse Auditorium. Tickets $ 7 for
public, $ S for students, $ 5 for groups
of 10 or more.
8 pjn. Jazz Trumpeter Msynard
Ferguson, Stephens College Assem-bly
HalL Tickets $ 7, and $ 11.
,."'' , 875- 505- 0
" V. i c" OTGnEATWSCOUJMQIA'
V V wxwuati era, wn. Ma aoa
'-
-' vv - .
Easiness ..................... .............. 12&
' Classified ................................' 7- 1Q- A
Gjs& don ............. 1....................... 4A
' Altering
more than
a theater' By Steve Weinstem
Bifissocrian staff writer
One of Columbia's landmarks soon may be unrecogni-zable,
and a distinguished architectural historian blames
profit motive for the potential loss facing the city.
The building is the Missouri Theater, 203 S. Ninth St.
David Soren, chairman of the University's department
of art history and archaeology, says he found out plans
for the theater's future when he received a telephone call
from a Colorado architectural firm Thursday. The caller
was interested in possible community reaction to alter-ing
the theater, Soren says.
" I'm testing the water," Soren quoted the architect as
saying.
The building is listed on the National Register of His-torical
Places. Soren's wife, Noelle, is a member of the
Missouri Department of Natural Resources and was re-sponsible
for the building's historic designation.
Soren said the architect who had contacted turn was in-vestigating
the possibility of turning the theater into a
triplex. Soren said he suggested putting a protective
shell over the theater's interior framework, thereby sav-ing
the intricate exterior decorations that make the
building so distinctive. The architect rejected these sug-gestions
as being too expensive, Soren said. He said the
architect cited " the profit motive" as the reason for the
chaoses.
Despite the landmark status, no permission is needed
to after or even destroy the building, Soren said.
" Really, all that can happen is a citizen's campaign to
save the Missouri Theater," he said.
Although Soren is leaving this summer to take a posi-tion
at the University of Arizona, he is concerned about
the building's fate.
" Ill be glad to speak out as long as I'm here," Soren
said. " But I hope that the citizens of Columbia will speak
out"
" The Missouri Theater doesn't know anything about
this," he said. " Tins is all being done by outsiders."
Commonwealth Theatres Inc., a chain based in Kansas
City, Mo., owns the Missouri Theater. Local Common-wealth
manager David Jones had no comment about
changes in the theater Thursday. Last year, Jones told
the Columbia Missourian,- - " They don't build them like
the Missouri any more. Theaters like the Missouri are
just too darn expensive to build."
. The theater, the oldest in Columbia, -- was- opened on '
Oct 5, 1928. The first movie shown there was Buster Kea- ton- ' s
" Steamboat Bill Jr." The theater also featured
vaudeville performances. Relics of those days remain in
old dressing rooms, the outline of an orchestra pit and a
3C04igfat chandelier.
The theater is a prize example of the elaborate art- de- co
style popular in the 1920s. Such theaters are becom-ing
increasingly rare today.
Ciml; eiaf& ax
Senator backs revenue director
JEFFERSON CITY ( AP)
Senate Majority Leader Harry
Wiggins, in an emotional address
to bis colleagues, Thursday de-fended
Revenue Director Ray
James against attacks on the his
agency's operations.
Wiggins, D- Kan- sas City, said
James is " an honest, faithful and
tetany dedicated director" who in
recent weeks had been the victim
of " cheap shots."
Last week, House Speaker Bob
Griffin, D- Camer- on, ordered the
House Committee on Governmen-tal
Review to begin an investiga-tion
into what Griffin said were se-rious
mismanagement problems in
the revenue agency.
Griffin has said the department
had been lax in collecting all tax
dollars due to the state, fired com-- 8
petent employees without just
cause and misspent money that
was intended to be used to hire ad-ditional
tax auditors.
But Wiggins said the criticism of
James and his agency was " unjus-tified,
unreasonable and unforgi- veable- ."
Griffin later denied he had taken
' ' cheap shots" at James.
" There's nothing personal be-tween
Ray James and L" Griffin
said in an interview. " But I think
it's, obvious to most people the rev-enue
department has a lot of prob-lems.
It's our responsibility to find
out what those problems are."
With James watching from an
upper Senate gallery, Wiggins de-fended
the revenue director as " a
man trying to do a good job."
" He has turned the department
into a department of the people,
' even though tax collectors are not
popular," Wiggins said.
Although Wiggins did not ad-dress
Griffin's allegations specif-ically,
he said he would be willing
to " stand up" for James against
any attacks on his ability to run
the department.
Joining Wiggins in defending the
revenue director was Sen. Robert
Johnson, R- Le- e's Summit
" Some of the attacks ( on
James) have been politically moti- -
viated in some cases," Johnson
said.
James later was applauded by
most of the senators in the cham-ber
when he was introduced by
Wiggins.
The senator's comments came
as he criticized the House for its
Wednesday vote to reject Gov.
Christopher Bond's plan to place
employees of the revenue and ag-riculture
departments under the
state's merit system.
As in previous years, the plan
was killed after opponents of the
merit system, which is similar to
federal civil service, said it only
would make it more difficult to fire
incompetent employees.
Backers of the plan, including
James, said the merit system
would help ensure that revenue
employees were hired or fired on
the basis of their ability rather
than their political affiliations.
" The merit system would put
the revenue department in the
shape it should be," Wiggins said I
later. 1
Banker; Wall Street gets leaks
WASHINGTON ( UPI) A top
banker has passed to the Labor De- - --
partment reports that sensitive eco-nomic
data is reaching Wall Street
and Chicago financial markets be-fore
government release, it was
learned Thursday. Security is being
tightened as a result
Government and banking officials
believe . such advance information
could result in profits on commodity
or cash exchanges for those who re-ceive
it before it becomes public
knowledge.
Peter Sternlight, senior vice presi-dent
of the Federal Reserve Bank of
New York, told UPI in an interview
that he has received reports from
" brokers or dealers in government
securities markets" that advance in-formation
is available on Wall Street
and Chicago markets.
" When there is a question of it ( the
embargo) being breached, I brought
it to the attention of BLS," Sternlight
said.
Henry Lowenstern, associate Bu
reau of Labor commissioner, said
reports were received from Stem- lig- ht
on Jan. 8 about December un-employment
data being " around the
floor" of the Board of Trade in Chi-cago
about 15 minutes before release
time, and on March 12 about produc-er
prices data available at the fu-tures
market in Chicago.
Lowenstern said earlier reports of
premature release might have been
predictions or " somebody's brava-do."
" In this case, with the unexpected
0.1 point drop ( in finished products),
that seemed less likely," he said.
President Reagan, through Mur-ray
Weidenbaum, chairman of the
Council of Economic Advisers, re-ceives
knowledge of BLS data a day
before the release.
! Sxcept fc? 20 or 30 individuals
working on the data in the bureau,
no others have knowledge until an
hour before release time, when the
media and -- some government offi
cials receive it on an embargoed ba-sis.
Sternlight said be has been called
by individuals he knows in govern-ment
securities markets about
teaks, but refused to divulge their
names to UPL
Sternlight said ha has been unable
to trace the reports beyond the indi-viduals
that call him.
" I find enormous resistance at
that point," he said. " They just don't
like to involve the next party on the
line."
The news that prices went up more
or less ( than expected) could influ-ence
the value of securities, Stern-light
added.
" It's possible to profit on different
kinds of commodity markets," said
Labor Department media director
Paul Williams.
The BLS has announced that effec-tive
April 2, the advance period that
news media can obtain econsanic re-ports
wfll be compressed from one
hour to 30 minutes, and the release
time moved to 8: 30 ajn. from 9 aon.